The state government has finally started to make moves towards finalising the Regional Plan 2021, a plan that has been waiting in the wings for over three years now. This is a plan that Goa has been crying out for a long time now. The focus should be on the plan and on the 3000 objections and suggestions that now need to be studied, inspected and filtered through.
Up until now, there were two plans being used in tandem. Once the RP 2021 is rectified and notified, the RP 2001 can be put back on the shelf where it belongs and a single land use plan be put into play. This will negate most of the issues related to land use that are frustrating residents of Goa. More than half the debates will be sorted out without much ado and everyone can start to rest easy.
The next week will be crucial though, as processes are finalised and the build-up to notification can finally happen. Yes, this will not happen overnight and will probably materialise just in time for the upcoming state elections in a little over a year’s time, but this is not about political ambitions. That Goa will finally have a Regional Plan to lay many issues to rest, should be the takeaway from this announcement.
